The Dark Side of Crowdsourcing for Cures
A medical ethicist dives into the millions of dollars raised for risky medical treatments
As I was shopping in my small Connecticut town this week, I kept running into people raising money. The sailing team was asking for donations in front of the supermarket. The gymnastics team was fundraising with a car wash. A veterans group was fundraising in front of the hardware store. Each group represented a well-established, 21st-century form of crowdsourcing: people asking for financial support from neighbors, strangers, and passersby.
There is nothing wrong with such fundraising. I skipped the car wash, but I did throw a few dollars toward the sailors and the vets. Why? While I did not know any of the high schoolers, I felt I could trust that my money would go to their cause. The vets were in their hats and uniforms, and I knew one of them. I was not worried in the least about getting ripped off and felt confident donating to a good cause.
But when I arrived home and turned on my computer, I found myself in a whole different world of crowdsourcing. One full of desperate strangers seeking significant gifts to permit them to grasp at treatments and “cures” that might save their lives.
